Thank you to everyone who participated in this woody debris & invasive plant removal!
Abdeali, Allen, Amrit, Amy, Areej, Barb, Bernadette, Bown, Brownie, Chloe, Christine, Daniel, Daivd, Dino, Dorothy, Farhan, Farnaz, Glen, Hannah, Hye Yeon, Jinhan, Jian Gang, Jodha, Justin, Kaden, Lauren, Lily, Linda, Lu, Lucas X., Lucas Z., Luffy, Lynn, Marco, Mauricio, Meggy, Muntazar, Nan, Ezekiel, Prashans, Rohy, Ruhul, Sahil, Sanaa, Sandy, Sarah, Saroj, Shelley, Simar, & Steven!
We had a great day in Ruth Johnson Park removing woody debris and invasive plants to prepare this site for hundreds of native trees & shrubs coming this Fall!
Read more about our day below!
Impacts
- 50 community members were engaged
- 25 participants visited Ruth Johnson Park for the first time
- 26 participants removed invasive plants for the first time
- 156 hours were contributed towards revitalizing local habitat!
- 27 cubic metres of woody debris removed (more than 5 truck loads!)
- 8 cubic metres (50 bathtubs!) of invasive English Ivy and English Holly was removed!
- 195 square metres of habitat revitalized and prepared for planting!
- Community members joined us from across the Lower Mainland including from White Rock, Surrey, Vancouver, & Richmond!
- Our activities are designed to foster a sense of community that extends beyond municipal borders. By engaging community members from across the region, we are reminded that we are part of a larger, interconnected community and have a shared responsibility of creating a cleaner, healthier environment regardless of where we call home
Highlights
- We built on work we’ve done at this park in the past extending back 13 years! Read summaries and check out photos of some of the past activities in this area of the park:
- Mar 30 2025 when we last worked in this part of the park!
- Jun 10 2025 when we worked with local students in the upper park!
- Apr 29 2025 with more students celebrating Earth Week with us!
- Nov 9 2024 where we planted 376 native trees & shrubs!
- Oct 22 2023 one of our first times in this part of the park! Check out the photos of what it looked like before!
- Several LMGT team members returned to join us at this activity and continue to be a key part of the stewardship of Ruth Johnson Park!
- We had participants of all ages & backgrounds at this activity from students to working professionals, long-time residents to new members of the community, and many more! Everyone had a great time connecting!
- One of our youth participants tackled an Ivy root thicker than his wrist, all by himself!
- Several community members who joined us lived within walking distance but had never been to Ruth Johnson Park before! They were thrilled to discover this beautiful green space in their neighbourhood!
- Sanaa came to learn more about invasive plants and how she could bring this knowledge back to her own property to help prevent the spread of these problem plants!
- A community member & regular park visitor has seen the difference we’ve made in this area of the park, was excited to learn about the behind-the-scenes on how this amazing change was made, and cheered us on!
- At break time, participants enjoyed a fresh fruit, veggie & dip tray, powdered donuts, chickpea churro puffs, healthy granola bars, juice boxes, Bubly sparkling water, and more!
- Thank you to Barb & Rohy for helping to pack up our tools & supplies at the end of the activity!
What Community Members Said
Check out these videos of some volunteers sharing what they enjoyed about today!
Video of Dino, talking about enjoying nature & helping the environment!
Video of Areej, talking about gaining gardening experience while helping out our ecosystem!
Video of Abdeali, talking about taking out removing invasive plants as a great way to reduce stress!
Community Investment Partner
THANK YOU to the City of White Rock for being a Community Investment Partner and providing the financial support and direction to make our work in White Rock possible! Special thanks to Andre, Spencer, Jamie, & Ralph. Thanks as well to Kristina & CJ for joining us on-site to help with the woody debris!
This activity was a great success and together we made a significant impact on the health and well-being of community members and the environment!
This was the 7th of 10 activities we are organizing in partnership with the City of White Rock this year. We’ll be back in White Rock on Oct. 4th for an amazing TD Tree Day Event and on Oct. 18th in partnership with Amma Canada! We’ll be planting hundreds of native trees & shrubs at both these activities and would love for you join us!
In-Kind Support
A big thank you to our in-kind supporters!
Lush provided their fantastic shower gels, body conditioner, and bath bombs with natural ingredients, sustainable packaging, and made in Canada! Our participants were really happy to take these gifts home!
If you’re interested in contributing in-kind or have ideas for potential partnerships, please contact Ashton Kerr. Your support makes a difference!
Why We Do This Work
The Lower Mainland Green Team is a program of the charity Green Teams of Canada.
We believe in the transformative power of hands-on environmental activities to empower individuals and strengthen communities.
Through initiatives like invasive plant removals, tree plantings, and litter clean-ups, we not only foster connections among participants but also deepen their relationship with nature. Spending time outdoors has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety while enhancing mood, focus, and overall mental and physical health.
Our activities are designed to be inclusive, welcoming individuals of all backgrounds, ages, abilities, and skill levels.
What sets us apart is we attract a wide mix of young community members who may not otherwise spend time outside, igniting their passion for nature and environmental care.
We are committed to instilling an environmental ethic that leads to lasting behavior change. We aim to create a sense of belonging and connection to place, encouraging participants to recognize their ability to make a meaningful impact.
Together, we can all make a difference. Join us as we build a brighter, greener future for everyone!
GTC Staff Who Made This Activity Happen!
Our staff work hard to run high-quality community activities. Outreach, activity logistics, social media, reporting on impacts, partnership building and more – they do it all!
Max Muehlen, our Lower Mainland Green Team’s Program Manager, and Simryn Dhensaw, our new Lower Mainland Green Team Program Assistant, led this activity together!
Ashton Kerr, the Lower Mainland Green Team’s Partnerships Manager, supported this activity behind the scenes!